Printing device

ABSTRACT

Provided is a printing device including: an capacitive touch panel; a home operation portion including a mechanical key for transitioning from a screen displayed on the capacitive touch panel to a basic screen; and a power supply operation portion including a mechanical key for shifting a power state of the printing device, in which the home operation portion is located in a first direction of the capacitive touch panel, and the power supply operation portion is located in a second direction of the capacitive touch panel, and the first direction and the second direction are orthogonal or opposite directions.

The present application is based on, and claims priority from JPApplication Serial Number 2021-113508, filed Jul. 8, 2021, thedisclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a printing device.

2. Related Art

In the related art, a user interface in which various inputs areperformed through an operation portion such as a button is known. Forexample, JP-A-2018-120329 discloses a technique for adjusting thevisibility of an operation portion by causing the operation portion toemit light or not.

When there is no consideration for a positional relationship betweencomponents of the user interface, there is a problem that an operabilitydeteriorates.

SUMMARY

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided aprinting device that performs printing using a recording material, theprinting device including: an capacitive touch panel; a home operationportion including a mechanical key for transitioning from a screendisplayed on the capacitive touch panel to a basic screen includinginformation on a remaining amount of the recording material; and a powersupply operation portion including a mechanical key for shifting a powerstate of the printing device, in which the home operation portion islocated in a first direction of the capacitive touch panel, and thepower supply operation portion is located in a second direction of thecapacitive touch panel, and the first direction and the second directionare orthogonal or opposite directions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a printing device.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the appearance of a printing device.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the appearance of a UI section.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a hierarchical structure of screens.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a basic screen.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a screen.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a screen.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the UI section.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a screen.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the appearance of the UI section.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the appearance of the UI section.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Here, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in thefollowing order.

1. Configuration of printing device2. Disposition for improving operability3. Other embodiments

1. Configuration of Printing Device

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a printing device 1according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The printingdevice 1 includes a processor 10, a non-volatile memory 20, a userinterface (UI) section 30, a communication section 40, and a printingsection 50. The processor 10 includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, and the like (notshown), and can execute various programs recorded in the non-volatilememory 20 to control each section of the printing device 1. Theprocessor 10 may be composed of a single chip or a plurality of chips,or may be configured as an SoC together with various functional blocksfor operating a printing device. Further, for example, an ASIC may beemployed instead of the CPU, or the CPU and the ASIC may cooperate witheach other.

The non-volatile memory 20 records programs (not shown) executed by theprocessor 10, setting data, image data, and the like. The setting datais data indicating settings when performing various processes in theprinting device 1. The image data is data for displaying a screen as auser interface on the UI section 30 and the like.

The UI section 30 is a device that receives an input of a user andoutputs various information to the user. In the present embodiment, theUI section 30 has an capacitive touch panel and an operation portionincluding mechanical keys. The capacitive touch panel includes a displaypanel for displaying various information and an electrostatic touchoperation detection portion superimposed on the display panel. The UIsection 30 displays various information on the display panel of the UIsection 30 according to the control of the processor 10. In the presentembodiment, the processor 10 controls the UI section 30 and can receivean input of the user to soft keys provided on the capacitive touch panelor mechanical keys provided on the UI section 30. The processor 10performs a process corresponding to the input content.

The communication section 40 includes various removable memories mountedon the printing device 1 and an interface circuit for communicating witha device connected to the printing device 1 by wire or wirelessly. Theprocessor 10 can acquire a file recorded in a device connected via thecommunication section 40 as a print target.

The printing section 50 includes actuators, sensors, drive circuits,mechanical parts, and the like for performing printing on a print mediumby an ink jet method. In the present embodiment, the printing device 1includes an accumulating portion (not shown) that accumulates fabric ina roll shape, and the fabric can be pulled out by a transport mechanism(not shown) and can be transported along a predetermined transport path.The printing section 50 can record a recording material on the fabricthat has reached a printing position in the process of transportationand perform printing.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the appearance of the printing device 1according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2 , the printingdevice 1 according to the present embodiment has a substantiallyrectangular parallelepiped housing, and the printing section 50 or thelike is provided inside the housing. In the present embodiment, x, y,and z axes are defined in the directions parallel to each side of therectangular parallelepiped. In FIG. 2 , the diagonally upper right sideof the drawing is a positive direction of the x-axis, the diagonallyupper left side of the drawing is a positive direction of the y-axis,and the upper side of the drawing is a z direction. The printing device1 has the largest surface, and a discharge port for the fabric as aprint medium M is provided at the center of one surface parallel to anxz plane. The print medium M after printing is discharged from thedischarge port. The UI section 30 is provided at the upper part on thepositive direction side of the x-axis when viewed from the dischargeport. In the present embodiment, the UI section 30 is attached to theprinting device 1 so that the UI section 30 is inclined with respect tothe surface of the housing of the printing device 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the appearance of the UI section 30. The UIsection 30 includes an capacitive touch panel 30 a, a home operationportion 30 b, a power supply operation portion 30 c, and a transportoperation portion 30 d. The power supply operation portion 30 c is amechanical key for shifting a power state of the printing device 1. Inthe present embodiment, the power state is on or off. Therefore, whenthe power of the printing device 1 is turned off and the user pressesthe power supply operation portion 30 c, the power state shifts to onand the processor 10 performs a start sequence. When the start sequenceis completed, the printing device 1 can perform various functions. Whenthe power of the printing device 1 is turned on and the user presses thepower supply operation portion 30 c, the processor 10 performs ashutdown sequence. When the shutdown sequence is completed, the powerstate shifts to off.

The home operation portion 30 b is a mechanical key for transitioningfrom a screen other than a basic screen to the basic screen. In thepresent embodiment, the basic screen is a screen displayed as the firstoperable screen after the printing device 1 is started. That is, whenthe start sequence of the printing device 1 is completed, the processor10 causes the capacitive touch panel 30 a to display the basic screenbased on the image data recorded in the non-volatile memory 20. Althoughvarious screens are displayed on the capacitive touch panel 30 a by theuser's operation, when the user presses the home operation portion 30 bwhile a screen other than the basic screen is displayed, the processor10 causes the capacitive touch panel 30 a to display the basic screen.

The transport operation portion 30 d includes a mechanical key foroperating a transport position of a print medium for printing. In thepresent embodiment, the transport operation portion 30 d includes aforward transport operation portion 30 d 1 and a reverse transportoperation portion 30 d 2. The forward transport operation portion 30 d 1is a mechanical key for transporting the medium in a positive direction,which is one of the transport directions of the print medium. Thereverse transport operation portion 30 d 2 includes a mechanical key fortransporting the medium in a direction opposite to the positivedirection. In the present embodiment, the direction in which the printmedium is transported when printing is performed on the print medium(the transport direction toward the discharge port) is the positivedirection. When the user presses the forward transport operation portion30 d 1, the processor 10 controls a transport mechanism (not shown) totransport the print medium in the positive direction with a transportamount corresponding to the period during which the pressing operationis performed. When the user presses the reverse transport operationportion 30 d 2, the processor 10 controls a transport mechanism (notshown) to transport the print medium in the reverse direction with atransport amount corresponding to the period during which the pressingoperation is performed.

In the present embodiment, each of the home operation portion 30 b, thepower supply operation portion 30 c, the forward transport operationportion 30 d 1, and the reverse transport operation portion 30 d 2 iscomposed of one push button, which is one mechanical key. Of course,each operation portion may include a plurality of mechanical keys andother objects, such as characters and Braille.

The user stands in a position where the capacitive touch panel 30 a canbe visually recognized and touch-operates the capacitive touch panel 30a and each operation portion. When the user stands in a position wherethe UI section 30 is visually recognized in order to use the printingdevice 1, the left-right direction when viewed from the user is parallelto an x direction shown in FIG. 2 . Further, a front-rear direction whenviewed from the user is parallel to a y direction shown in FIG. 2 .

As described above, the UI section 30 is attached so as to be inclinedwith respect to the surface of the housing of the printing device 1.Therefore, the surface of the capacitive touch panel 30 a in the UIsection 30 is not parallel to either the xz plane or a yz plane. Thatis, the longitudinal direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a isparallel to the left-right direction and the x direction when viewedfrom the user, but the lateral direction of the capacitive touch panel30 a is not parallel to either the z direction or the y direction. Inthe present embodiment, one of the lateral directions of the capacitivetouch panel 30 a (a positive direction of a y′ axis shown in FIG. 3 ) isreferred to as a depth direction. That is, although it is the directiontoward the back side when viewed from the user who uses the printingdevice 1, the direction parallel to the surface of the capacitive touchpanel 30 a is referred to as a depth direction. The direction oppositeto the depth direction is a front direction.

In the present embodiment, the processor 10 causes the capacitive touchpanel 30 a to display various screens by the program recorded in thenon-volatile memory 20. In the present embodiment, a plurality ofscreens form a hierarchical structure, and a screen in the uppermosthierarchy is one type of basic screen. When the user performs a touchoperation on an operation portion set in the basic screen, a screen inthe lower hierarchy corresponding to the operation portion is displayed.There may be a plurality of screens in the second hierarchy or lower.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a hierarchical structure of screens in thepresent embodiment. In FIG. 4 , the uppermost hierarchy is shown on theleft side, the second hierarchy is shown on the right side of theuppermost hierarchy, and the third hierarchy is shown on the right sideof the second hierarchy. Of course, there may be hierarchies of thethird hierarchy or lower. In addition, in FIG. 4 , some of a pluralityof screens are shown in detail. In the present embodiment, an operationportion and an information display portion are present in each screen.The operation portion is a part including soft keys that can be operatedby the user, and the soft keys, which are areas in which variousinformation is displayed and the detection of a touch operation by theuser is effective are set therein. In the information display portion,various information is displayed, but soft keys are not included.

In FIG. 4 , the content of each screen is indicated by the characters inthe rectangle. As shown in FIG. 4 , an operation portion and aninformation display portion are present in the basic screen according tothe present embodiment, and the operation portion includes a fixedoperation portion and a detailed setting portion. The informationdisplay portion includes, for example, a printing availability displayportion that indicates whether or not printing is available in theprinting device 1 and an environmental information display portion thatdisplays environmental information such as temperature and humiditydetected by a sensor (not shown) included in the printing device 1.

The fixed operation portion is an operation portion that is common to aplurality of screens and is displayed at a fixed position. The detailedsetting portion may be different for each of the plurality of screens.FIG. 5 is an example of a basic screen displayed on the capacitive touchpanel 30 a. In the example shown in FIG. 5 , the soft keys on thecapacitive touch panel 30 a are colored gray. In the present embodiment,a fixed operation portion 31 a is composed of a plurality of soft keysand the soft keys are displayed side by side along the upper side of thedisplayable area of the capacitive touch panel 30 a. Although the brokenline shown in FIG. 5 indicates a boundary of the displayable area, theboundary is not explicitly displayed on the capacitive touch panel 30 a.

The fixed operation portion 31 a is an operation portion that displays ascreen for giving an instruction for and checking detailed settings inthe printing device 1, and is displayed on all screens in the presentembodiment. FIG. 5 shows an example in which six fixed operationportions 31 a are present. The transition destination by the fixedoperation portion 31 a is not limited, but in the examples shown inFIGS. 4 and 5 , there are menu buttons for displaying a selection liston the setting screen of various functions, a transport portion cleaningthat displays a screen for giving an instruction for cleaning of atransport portion, and the like.

In the detailed setting portion, some of items for which parameters canbe set in the printing device 1 are displayed to be selectable. Theexample shown in FIG. 5 includes a medium setting portion 32 and thelike for transitioning to a screen for making settings related to theprint medium. Further, in the present embodiment, the basic screenincludes a recording material setting portion 33 for displayinginformation on the remaining amount of the recording material andtransitioning to the screen for making settings related to the recordingmaterial.

The information on the remaining amount of the recording material isshown by a bar graph formed of rectangles indicating the capacity of anink tank and a rectangle indicating the remaining amount. That is, theserectangles are displayed for each color of the recording materials, andare configured so that a relative relationship between the capacity ofthe ink tank and the remaining amount can be understood. The processor10 acquires the remaining amount of the recording material in the inktank for each color of the recording materials by using a sensor (notshown). The processor 10 displays the information on the remainingamount for each color of the recording materials at a default positionon the basic screen based on the acquired remaining amount. Also, in theexample shown in FIG. 5 , information indicating a defect, for example,an icon indicating that the product cannot be used or an icon indicatinga warning is superimposed on the information on the remaining amount ofthe recording material of each color.

When a touch operation is performed on each operation portion, theprocessor 10 specifies the touch-operated operation portion andspecifies a screen associated with the specified operation portion. Theprocessor 10 refers to the non-volatile memory 20, controls thecapacitive touch panel 30 a based on image data for generating thespecified screen, and displays the screen.

FIG. 6 is an example of a recording material setting screen displayedwhen the user performs a touch operation on the recording materialsetting portion 33 on the basic screen shown in FIG. 5 . Also on therecording material setting screen shown in FIG. 6 , the soft keys on thecapacitive touch panel 30 a are colored in gray, and the boundary of thedisplayable area is indicated by a broken line, as in the example shownin FIG. 5 . As shown in FIG. 4 , the recording material setting screenalso includes an operation portion and an information display portion.

The information display portion of the recording material setting screenincludes a recording material detail display portion and the like thatshow the information on the remaining amount for each color of therecording materials displayed on the basic screen. In the recordingmaterial detail display portion, information indicating the remainingamount for each color of the recording materials is shown in the samemanner as in FIG. 5 . Further, an icon indicating a defect or the likeis displayed in association with the information on the remaining amountof the recording material of each color. In the recording materialdetail display portion, a status for each color may be displayed in moredetail than the basic screen.

The operation portion of the recording material setting screen includesa fixed operation portion 31 a, a return operation portion 34, amaintenance operation portion 35 a as an in-screen operation portion 35,and a detailed check portion 35 b. As described above, the fixedoperation portion 31 a is the same as the fixed operation portion 31 aon the basic screen. The return operation portion 34 is a soft key fortransitioning from the displayed screen to an original screen. Thereturn operation portion 34 is an operation portion for returning to thescreen displayed before the transition to the displayed screen, and isan operation portion for returning to the basic screen in the case ofthe recording material setting screen shown in FIG. 6 . The returnoperation portion 34 is displayed in all hierarchies of the secondhierarchy or lower.

The maintenance operation portion 35 a is an operation portion forgiving an instruction to start maintenance of the mechanism forrecording the recording material on the print medium. When the userperforms a touch operation on the maintenance operation portion 35 a,the processor 10 performs maintenance such as cleaning of an ejectionnozzle of the recording material. Of course, in the printing device 1capable of giving an instruction for the details of maintenance, thescreen may be changed to the screen for giving an instruction for thedetails of maintenance in response to the touch operation on themaintenance operation portion 35 a.

The detailed check portion 35 b is an operation portion for giving aninstruction for a transition to a screen for checking in detail theremaining amount of the recording material for each color, the state ofthe mechanism for ejecting the recording material, and the like. Whenthe user performs a touch operation on the detailed check portion 35 b,the processor 10 acquires detailed information such as information onthe remaining amount for each color of the recording materials anddefects for each recording material, and displays the detailedinformation on the screen after the transition.

As in the above example, in the present embodiment, the processor 10causes the capacitive touch panel 30 a to display one of the screensdefined to have a hierarchical structure, and can perform the screentransition according to the input of the user.

In the present embodiment, as described above, the user can performvarious operations by the operation portions of the mechanical keys orthe soft keys provided in the UI section 30. As shown in FIG. 5 and thelike, these operation portions are used for giving instructions having alarge number and various contents. Therefore, when there is noconsideration regarding the positional relationship between theoperation portion and the surrounding objects, the operability maydeteriorate.

For example, when the printing device 1 is normally used, the user doesnot normally operate the power supply operation portion 30 c. However,when there is no consideration regarding the positional relationshipbetween the power supply operation portion 30 c and other operationportions, the user may touch the power supply operation portion 30 c dueto an erroneous operation, and the power state of the printing device 1may shift. Therefore, in the present embodiment, various considerationsare made so that the operability of the operation portion is notdeteriorated.

2. Disposition for Improving Operability

In the present embodiment, the home operation portion 30 b is closer tothe capacitive touch panel 30 a than the power supply operation portion30 c in a state where the UI section 30 is viewed along a directionperpendicular to a display panel surface of the capacitive touch panel30 a. That is, in the xy′ plane shown in FIG. 3 , the home operationportion 30 b is closer to the capacitive touch panel 30 a than the powersupply operation portion 30 c. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5 , adistance L₁ between the home operation portion 30 b and the capacitivetouch panel 30 a is shorter than a distance L₂ between the power supplyoperation portion 30 c and the capacitive touch panel 30 a.

The distance between the operation portions can be evaluated by variousindexes, for example, by the shortest distance. Further, in the presentembodiment, the distance between the capacitive touch panel 30 a and theoperation portion is the distance between an edge portion of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a and an edge portion of the operation portionwhich are visible on the UI section 30. In the present embodiment, thecapacitive touch panel 30 a, the home operation portion 30 b, and thepower supply operation portion 30 c are rectangular or substantiallyrectangular, and their sides are parallel to the x direction or a y′direction. Therefore, the distance between them is the distance in the xdirection or the y′ direction.

In the present embodiment, the home operation portion 30 b is closer tothe operation portion on the capacitive touch panel 30 a than the powersupply operation portion 30 c. Specifically, the distance between therecording material setting portion 33, which is the operation portionclosest to the home operation portion 30 b among the operation portionson the capacitive touch panel 30 a, and the home operation portion 30 bis defined as a distance L₃. Further, the distance between the fixedoperation portion 31 a at the left end, which is the operation portionclosest to the power supply operation portion 30 c among the operationportions on the capacitive touch panel 30 a, and the power supplyoperation portion 30 c is defined as a distance L₄. At this time, thedistance L₃<distance L₄ is satisfied.

Further, in the present embodiment, the home operation portion 30 b iscloser to the displayable area of the capacitive touch panel 30 a thanthe power supply operation portion 30 c. Specifically, the distancebetween a lower edge portion of the displayable area of the capacitivetouch panel 30 a and the home operation portion 30 b is defined as adistance L₅. Further, the distance between the left edge portion of thedisplayable area on the capacitive touch panel 30 a and the power supplyoperation portion 30 c is the distance L₄. At this time, the distanceL₅<distance L₄ is satisfied.

In the present embodiment, since the home operation portion 30 b iscloser to the capacitive touch panel 30 a than the power supplyoperation portion 30 c, it is easy to perform an operation of moving afinger back and forth between the soft key on the capacitive touch panel30 a and the home operation portion 30 b. The home operation portion 30b is an operation portion for switching a screen other than the basicscreen displayed on the capacitive touch panel 30 a to the basic screen.Therefore, it is easier for the user to move his/her finger between thehome operation portion 30 b and the capacitive touch panel 30 a than tomove his/her finger between the power supply operation portion 30 c andthe capacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore, the user can easily inputwhile moving his/her finger between the home operation portion 30 b andthe capacitive touch panel 30 a.

It is less likely that the user will turn off the power of the printingdevice 1 while performing various inputs to the UI section 30.Therefore, since the power supply operation portion 30 c is disposedfarther from the capacitive touch panel 30 a than the home operationportion 30 b, it is less likely that the user erroneously operates thepower supply operation portion 30 c while using the printing device 1.Further, the power supply operation portion 30 c is present on the backside of the home operation portion 30 b when viewed from the user.Therefore, the power supply operation portion 30 c is disposed at aposition farther from the user than the home operation portion 30 b.Therefore, it is less likely that the user erroneously operates thepower supply operation portion 30 c while using the printing device 1.

Further, the home operation portion 30 b is an operation portion forswitching the screen to the basic screen. Therefore, when an operationis performed on the home operation portion 30 b, it is highly likelythat the user is trying to perform an operation on the soft key on thebasic screen after switching, a check of information on the basicscreen, and the like. When the home operation portion 30 b is closer tothe capacitive touch panel 30 a than the power supply operation portion30 c, the user can easily operate the home operation portion 30 b whilekeeping both the home operation portion 30 b and the capacitive touchpanel 30 a in the field of view. Accordingly, it is possible to operatethe soft keys on the basic screen in the capacitive touch panel 30 a andcheck the information on the basic screen without having to move theline of sight a large number of times. Therefore, it is possible toprovide a user interface that is easy to operate.

Further, in the present embodiment, the fixed operation portion 31 a isdisplayed along the upper side of the displayable area on all thescreens on the capacitive touch panel 30 a. That is, the fixed operationportion 31 a is also displayed on screens other than the basic screen.Therefore, it is less likely that the operation is performed on thefixed operation portion 31 a that was displayed even before the screentransition by the operation on the fixed operation portion 31 aimmediately after the user performs the operation on the home operationportion 30 b.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the fixed operation portion 31 ais disposed at the farthest position (in the depth direction) whenviewed from the home operation portion 30 b among all the operationportions displayed on the screen of the capacitive touch panel 30 a.According to this configuration, the operation portion operatedimmediately after the operation on the home operation portion 30 b andthe information checked immediately after the operation on the homeoperation portion 30 b can be disposed relatively close to the homeoperation portion 30 b. Therefore, it becomes easy to perform theoperation immediately after the operation on the home operation portion30 b and the check of the information.

Further, the distance L₁ between the capacitive touch panel 30 a and thehome operation portion 30 b is smaller than a width W₁ of the mechanicalkey of the home operation portion 30 b. In the present embodiment, thewidth W₁ is the length of the mechanical key of the home operationportion 30 b in the depth direction, but the length in the depthdirection and the length in the left-right direction of the mechanicalkey are the same. The width of the mechanical key of the home operationportion 30 b is set to be slightly larger than the area touched by thefingertip so that the home operation portion 30 b can be operated withthe fingertip of one finger of the user.

Therefore, when the distance L₁ between the capacitive touch panel 30 aand the home operation portion 30 b is smaller than the width W₁ of themechanical key of the home operation portion 30 b, the distance L₁between the capacitive touch panel 30 a and the home operation portion30 b is a distance equivalent to the width of the fingertip. Therefore,when the finger is moved by a distance equivalent to the width of thefingertip after the operation on the home operation portion 30 b, thefinger can be moved to the capacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore, thetouch operation on the capacitive touch panel 30 a is possible only bymoving the finger by a short moving distance. Therefore, the operationusing the home operation portion 30 b and the soft keys on thecapacitive touch panel 30 a can be easily performed.

Further, the distance L₂ between the capacitive touch panel 30 a and thepower supply operation portion 30 c is larger than the width W₁ of themechanical key of the home operation portion 30 b. Therefore, in orderto perform a touch operation on the power supply operation portion 30 cafter the touch operation on the capacitive touch panel 30 a isperformed, it is necessary to move the finger at least over a distancelonger than the width of the fingertip. That is, the user cannot touchthe power supply operation portion 30 c without moving his/her fingerfrom the capacitive touch panel 30 a to some extent. Therefore, it ispossible to reduce the likelihood that the user unintentionally anderroneously operates the power supply operation portion 30 c.

Further, in the present embodiment, a light source Ls that illuminatesthe capacitive touch panel 30 a from the back surface of the panel islocated at the end of the capacitive touch panel 30 a on the homeoperation portion 30 b side. In FIG. 6 , the position of the lightsource Ls is schematically shown by a broken line rectangle. In thepresent embodiment, the capacitive touch panel 30 a is an edge lighttype liquid crystal display device. The light source Ls is disposed onone side of the display panel of the capacitive touch panel 30 a insidethe UI section 30, and the entire surface of the display panel isilluminated by a light guide plate or the like. In the presentembodiment, the light source Ls is located at the end of the capacitivetouch panel 30 a on the home operation portion 30 b side. That is, inFIG. 6 , it is disposed at the lower end of the capacitive touch panel30 a.

The light source Ls is a light source that illuminates the entiresurface of the capacitive touch panel 30 a, and is accompanied by areflector or the like for guiding light to the back surface of thepanel. Therefore, a certain amount of space is required around the lightsource Ls. On the other hand, since the home operation portion 30 bincludes a mechanical key, a mechanism constituting the mechanical key,a circuit for detecting the on/off of the mechanical key, and the likeare required, and a certain amount of space is required.

As described above, in order to provide the light source Ls and the homeoperation portion 30 b inside the UI section 30, a space correspondingto each mechanism is required. When the light source Ls and the homeoperation portion 30 b are disposed in different directions when viewedfrom the capacitive touch panel 30 a, for example, on the upper side andthe lower side, spaces are required in different directions,respectively. However, as shown in FIG. 6 , when the light source Ls andthe home operation portion 30 b are disposed in the same direction whenviewed from the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the light source Ls and thehome operation portion 30 b can be disposed in a state where the spacerequired by each is shared with each other. As a result, the spaceoccupied by the capacitive touch panel 30 a and the home operationportion 30 b can be reduced, and the UI section 30 can be made compact.

Further, in the present embodiment, the information on the remainingamount in the basic screen is displayed at a position closer to the homeoperation portion 30 b than the power supply operation portion 30 c inthe screen. In the example shown in FIG. 5 , the information on theremaining amount is displayed on the recording material setting portion33, and the distance between the power supply operation portion 30 c andthe recording material setting portion 33 is a distance L₆. The distancebetween the home operation portion 30 b and the recording materialsetting portion 33 is the distance L₃. The distance L₆ between the powersupply operation portion 30 c and the recording material setting portion33 is the shortest distance between the power supply operation portion30 c and the recording material setting portion 33, and the distance L₃between the home operation portion 30 b and the recording materialsetting portion 33 is the shortest distance between the home operationportion 30 b and the recording material setting portion 33.

The home operation portion 30 b is an operation portion for switching ascreen other than the basic screen to the basic screen. Therefore, afteroperating the home operation portion 30 b, it is highly likely that theuser has the intention to check the information in the basic screen orthe like. When the information on the remaining amount is closer to thehome operation portion 30 b than the power supply operation portion 30c, immediately after the touch operation while visually recognizing thehome operation portion 30 b, the information on the remaining amount canbe checked with a smaller amount of movement of the line of sight thanimmediately after the touch operation while visually recognizing thepower supply operation portion 30 c.

In addition, the basic screen includes a plurality of soft keys, theinformation on the remaining amount includes a soft key, and the softkey included in the information on the remaining amount is closest tothe home operation portion 30 b among all the soft keys displayed on thebasic screen. That is, the recording material setting portion 33 on thebasic screen shows the information on the remaining amount for eachcolor by a rectangle showing the remaining amount for each color of therecording materials. Since the recording material setting portion 33 isalso a soft key for receiving a touch operation for transitioning to ascreen for making settings related to the recording material, therecording material setting portion 33 showing the information on theremaining amount includes the soft key.

In addition to the recording material setting portion 33, the basicscreen shown in FIG. 5 includes operation portions such as the mediumsetting portion 32 that receives touch operations by the user, and theseoperation portions are colored in gray. These operation portions aresoft keys for giving an instruction for screen transitions to lowerhierarchies. Then, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5 , theoperation portion (soft key) closest to the home operation portion 30 bis the recording material setting portion 33.

The home operation portion 30 b is an operation portion for switching ascreen other than the basic screen to the basic screen. Therefore, afteroperating the home operation portion 30 b, it is highly likely that theuser has the intention to operate the operation portion in the basicscreen. When the recording material setting portion 33 among theoperation portions is closest to the home operation portion 30 b,immediately after the touch operation on the home operation portion 30b, the touch operation on the recording material setting portion 33 canbe performed only by moving a shorter distance than the other operationportions. Therefore, the user can very easily perform the touchoperation on the recording material setting portion 33 immediately afterthe touch operation on the home operation portion 30 b.

In the present embodiment, as described above, the distance L₃ from thehome operation portion 30 b to the recording material setting portion33, which is the operation portion on the basic screen at the shortestdistance, is smaller than the distance L₄ from the power supplyoperation portion 30 c to the fixed operation portion 31 a at the leftend, which is the operation portion on the basic screen at the shortestdistance. Therefore, immediately after the touch operation on the homeoperation portion 30 b, the touch operation can be performed on theoperation portion on the basic screen only by moving a shorter distancethan immediately after the touch operation on the power supply operationportion 30 c. Therefore, the user can easily operate the operationportion on the basic screen immediately after the touch operation on thehome operation portion 30 b, and it is less likely that the usererroneously operates the power supply operation portion 30 c immediatelyafter operating the operation portion on the basic screen.

In the present embodiment, the disposition of the operation portion isdevised even on the screens in lower hierarchies than the basic screen.As shown in FIG. 6 , the recording material setting screen displayed bytouch-operating the recording material setting portion 33 includes thereturn operation portion 34 including a soft key for transitioning fromthe displayed screen to the original screen, and the in-screen operationportion 35 including a soft key other than the return operation portion34. In the present embodiment, the in-screen operation portion 35includes the maintenance operation portion 35 a and the detailed checkportion 35 b.

FIG. 6 is an example of a screen on a lower hierarchy than the basicscreen, but in the present embodiment, the return operation portion 34is displayed at the same position on all the screens in the secondhierarchy or lower. In the present embodiment, the return operationportion 34 is not displayed on the basic screen. Therefore, when thescreen other than the basic screen is a first screen and the basicscreen is a second screen, the return operation portion 34 is displayedon the first screen and not displayed on the second screen. In thepresent embodiment, since the basic screen is the screen in theuppermost hierarchy, when the return operation portion 34 is notdisplayed on the basic screen, unnecessary operation portions are notdisposed in the basic screen and the screen can be used efficiently.

Further, as described above, the fixed operation portion 31 a isdisplayed at the same position on all screens including the basicscreen. Therefore, the user can give an execution instruction for thedefault function listed as the fixed operation portion 31 a regardlessof the hierarchy of the screen. The in-screen operation portion 35 is anoperation portion for giving different instructions depending on thescreens of the second hierarchy or lower, and the display positions ofthe in-screen operation portions 35 in different screens may bedifferent from each other.

In the example shown in FIG. 6 , the home operation portion 30 b and thereturn operation portion 34 sandwich the in-screen operation portion 35.Specifically, in FIG. 6 , a straight line Lo extending from the centerof the home operation portion 30 b to the center of the return operationportion 34 is shown by a one-dot chain line. The straight line Lo is astraight line passing through the maintenance operation portion 35 a,which is one of the in-screen operation portions 35, and since eachoperation portion is present in such a positional relationship, the homeoperation portion 30 b and the return operation portion 34 are disposedto sandwich the in-screen operation portion 35.

The straight line for specifying whether or not the home operationportion 30 b and the return operation portion 34 sandwich the in-screenoperation portion 35 is not limited to the straight line passing throughthe center of the operation portion, and may be a straight line passingthrough any position of the operation portion, for example, an end. Whena straight line passing through any position in two operation portionspasses through another operation portion present between these twooperation portions, it can be said that the two operation portionssandwich the other operation portion (the same applies to any operationportion). Further, whether or not the two operation portions sandwichthe other operation portion may be specified in a specific direction,for example, in the y′ direction or the x direction shown in FIG. 6 .For example, in the example shown in FIG. 6 , in the y′ direction, thehome operation portion 30 b and the return operation portion 34 sandwichthe in-screen operation portion 35.

The home operation portion 30 b is an operation portion for returning tothe basic screen from a screen other than the basic screen, and thereturn operation portion 34 is an operation portion for returning to thescreen displayed before the transition to the displayed screen. Asdescribed above, both the home operation portion 30 b and the returnoperation portion 34 have a function of switching screens to return tothe original screen, that is, the immediately preceding screen or thefirst screen. Therefore, the functions of the home operation portion 30b and the return operation portion 34 are similar functions. On theother hand, the in-screen operation portion 35 such as the maintenanceoperation portion 35 a is an operation portion operated by the user withthe intention to select a specific function such as selecting a certainfunction, although the screen transition may be accompanied.

When the home operation portion 30 b and the return operation portion 34sandwich the in-screen operation portion 35 as in the presentembodiment, the home operation portion 30 b and the return operationportion 34 are present on opposite sides when viewed from the in-screenoperation portion 35. Therefore, the home operation portion 30 b and thereturn operation portion 34 having similar functions are not in a stateof being adjacent to each other. When the operation portions havingsimilar functions are adjacent to each other, the user tends to make anerroneous operation in which the user operates one in a state where theuser intends to operate the other. However, according to the presentembodiment, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that the user whointends to perform a touch operation on one of the operation portionshaving similar functions erroneously performs a touch operation on theother operation portion. In particular, when the user becomes accustomedto the operation of the UI section 30, it can be recognized that thepositions of the home operation portion 30 b and the return operationportion 34 are clearly different, so that the likelihood of an erroneousoperation can be reduced.

In the present embodiment, the return operation portion 34 is displayedon the portion near the upper side of the capacitive touch panel 30 a,and the home operation portion 30 b is disposed on the front side of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore, the return operation portion 34and the home operation portion 30 b are present on opposite sides ofeach other when viewed from the center of the capacitive touch panel 30a. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that the user whointends to perform a touch operation on one of the operation portionshaving a similar function erroneously performs a touch operation on theother operation portion.

Further, the screen in the present embodiment also includes a screen inwhich the home operation portion 30 b and the power supply operationportion 30 c sandwich the in-screen operation portion 35. FIG. 7 is adiagram showing an example of a maintenance screen that can be displayedon the capacitive touch panel 30 a in the present embodiment. Themaintenance screen is displayed, for example, in response to a touchoperation on the maintenance operation portion 35 a shown in FIG. 6 .Also on the maintenance screen, the soft keys on the capacitive touchpanel 30 a are colored in gray, and the boundary of the displayable areais shown by a broken line, as in the example shown in FIG. 5 . Themaintenance screen also includes an operation portion that can betouch-operated and an information display portion that cannot betouch-operated.

In the information display portion of the maintenance screen, characterssuch as screen description (printer care) and information such astemperature and humidity are displayed. The operation portion of themaintenance screen includes a fixed operation portion 31 a, a returnoperation portion 34, and an in-screen operation portion 35. Thein-screen operation portion 35 is an operation portion for inputting anexecution instruction for maintenance and the like of the printingdevice 1, and includes, for example, an operation portion for giving anexecution instruction for “print head nozzle check”, an executioninstruction for “maintenance parts replacement”, and the like. The fixedoperation portion 31 a is the same as the fixed operation portion 31 aof the basic screen shown in FIG. 5 , and the return operation portion34 is the same as the return operation portion 34 of the recordingmaterial setting screen shown in FIG. 6 .

In the maintenance screen shown in FIG. 7 , a straight line Lo extendingfrom the center of the home operation portion 30 b to the center of thepower supply operation portion 30 c is shown by a one-dot chain line. Asshown in FIG. 7 , the straight line Lo passes through at least one ofthe in-screen operation portions 35. Therefore, the home operationportion 30 b and the power supply operation portion 30 c sandwich thein-screen operation portion 35. According to this configuration, thehome operation portion 30 b and the power supply operation portion 30 care present in opposite directions when viewed from the in-screenoperation portion 35. Further, both the home operation portion 30 b andthe power supply operation portion 30 c include a mechanical key and areprovided outside the capacitive touch panel 30 a.

Therefore, in the configuration shown in FIG. 7 , the home operationportion 30 b and the power supply operation portion 30 c are not in astate of being adjacent to each other. According to this configuration,it is possible to reduce the likelihood that the user who intends toperform a touch operation on one of the home operation portion 30 b andthe power supply operation portion 30 c erroneously performs a touchoperation on the other operation portion.

Although the home operation portion 30 b can be frequently operated inthe process of using the printing device 1, the power supply operationportion 30 c is less likely to be operated in the process of using theprinting device 1. When the home operation portion 30 b and the powersupply operation portion 30 c are disposed close to each other, it ishighly likely that a touch operation is erroneously performed on thepower supply operation portion 30 c when a touch operation is performedon the home operation portion 30 b. However, when the home operationportion 30 b and the power supply operation portion 30 c are configuredto sandwich the in-screen operation portion 35 as in the presentembodiment, it is possible to reduce the likelihood of an erroneousoperation on the power supply operation portion 30 c.

Further, the screen in the present embodiment includes a screen in whichthe home operation portion 30 b and the in-screen operation portion 35are located at the same position in the longitudinal direction of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a. For example, in any of the screens shown inFIGS. 6 and 7 , when the home operation portion 30 b is virtually movedin the y′ direction perpendicular to the x direction, which is thelongitudinal direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the homeoperation portion 30 b overlaps the in-screen operation portion 35.Although the return operation portion 34 is not displayed on the basicscreen shown in FIG. 5 , when the operation portion displayed on thebasic screen (for example, the recording material setting portion 33) isregarded as an in-screen operation portion different from the returnoperation portion 34, the home operation portion 30 b and the in-screenoperation portion are located at the same position in the longitudinaldirection of the capacitive touch panel 30 a.

As described above, when the home operation portion 30 b and thein-screen operation portion 35 are located at the same position in thelongitudinal direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the fingercan be moved between the home operation portion 30 b and the in-screenoperation portion 35 only by moving the finger in the lateral directionwithout moving the finger in the longitudinal direction of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore, it becomes easy to touch thein-screen operation portion 35 immediately after the touch operation onthe home operation portion 30 b, or to touch the home operation portion30 b immediately after the touch operation on the in-screen operationportion 35.

Further, in the present embodiment, the power supply operation portion30 c is located on the back side of the in-screen operation portion 35in the lateral direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a when viewedfrom the user who uses the printing device. Specifically, as shown inFIGS. 5 to 7 , the power supply operation portion 30 c is present on theback side of the in-screen operation portion 35 in the y′ direction,which is the lateral direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a. Thatis, in the y′ direction, the side on the back side of the power supplyoperation portion 30 c is present on the further back side than the sideon the back side of the in-screen operation portion 35. Therefore, thepower supply operation portion 30 c is present at a farther positionwhen viewed from the user who uses the printing device 1 than thein-screen operation portion 35, and is possible to reduce the likelihoodof an erroneous operation on the power supply operation portion 30 c inthe process of operating the in-screen operation portion 35.

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7 , for example, various operationportions are present on the screen in the present embodiment. As shownin FIGS. 5 to 7 , the power supply operation portion 30 c in the presentembodiment is present on the back side of all the operation portionsdisplayed on the screen of the capacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore,in the present embodiment, the power supply operation portion 30 c ispresent on the innermost side of all the operation portions displayed onthe screen of the capacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore, the powersupply operation portion 30 c is present at the position farthest fromthe user who uses the printing device 1 among all the operation portionsof the UI section 30. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the likelihoodof erroneously operating the power supply operation portion 30 c in theprocess of operating the operation portions other than the power supplyoperation portion 30 c.

Further, in the present embodiment, the home operation portion 30 b andthe power supply operation portion 30 c, which are mechanical keys,sandwich the capacitive touch panel 30 a. For example, when a straightline Lo extending from the home operation portion 30 b to the powersupply operation portion 30 c is virtually considered as in the one-dotchain line shown in FIG. 7 , the straight line Lo passes through thecapacitive touch panel 30 a in the xy′ plane. According to thisconfiguration, the capacitive touch panel 30 a can be present betweenthe home operation portion 30 b and the power supply operation portion30 c. Therefore, the home operation portion 30 b and the power supplyoperation portion 30 c can be disposed apart from each other, and it ispossible to reduce the likelihood that the power supply operationportion 30 c is erroneously operated when the home operation portion 30b is touched. Further, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that thehome operation portion 30 b is erroneously operated when the powersupply operation portion 30 c is touched.

Further, in the present embodiment, the home operation portion 30 b andthe power supply operation portion 30 c sandwich the information on theremaining amount displayed on the capacitive touch panel 30 a.Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5 , since the information on theremaining amount is included in the recording material setting portion33 displayed on the basic screen, and the recording material settingportion 33 is disposed at the lower left of the basic screen, in theembodiment shown in FIG. 5 , the information on the remaining amount issandwiched between the home operation portion 30 b and the power supplyoperation portion 30 c. According to this configuration, the homeoperation portion 30 b and the power supply operation portion 30 c canbe disposed apart from each other, and it is possible to reduce thelikelihood that the power supply operation portion 30 c is erroneouslyoperated when the home operation portion 30 b is touched. Further, it ispossible to reduce the likelihood that the home operation portion 30 bis erroneously operated when the power supply operation portion 30 c istouched.

Further, in the present embodiment, the mechanical key of the homeoperation portion 30 b is smaller than the mechanical key of the powersupply operation portion 30 c. According to this configuration, thepower supply operation portion 30 c can be made more conspicuous thanthe home operation portion 30 b. Since the power supply operationportion 30 c is a mechanical key for switching the state where the powerof the printing device 1 is off to the state where the power of theprinting device 1 is on, it is preferable that the power supplyoperation portion 30 c is an easy-to-understand key when viewed from theuser. When the mechanical key of the home operation portion 30 b issmaller than the mechanical key of the power supply operation portion 30c, the power supply operation portion 30 c can be an easy-to-understandand conspicuous key than the home operation portion 30 b. Even thoughthe power supply operation portion 30 c is larger than the homeoperation portion 30 b and is thus an easy-to-understand mechanical key,in the present embodiment, the power supply operation portion 30 c isdisposed at the innermost part of the operation portions, and the homeoperation portion 30 b is disposed at the frontmost part of theoperation portions. Therefore, the likelihood that the usertouch-operates the power supply operation portion 30 c due to anerroneous operation is reduced.

Further, in the present embodiment, a panel installation surface Spprovided with the capacitive touch panel 30 a is a surface differentfrom a power supply operation portion installation surface So providedwith the power supply operation portion 30 c. In FIG. 3 , the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So are indicated by arrows. The panel installationsurface Sp is a surface provided with an opening Spo for allowing theuser to visually recognize the display panel of the capacitive touchpanel 30 a among the plurality of surfaces constituting the outersurface of the UI section 30. The power supply operation portioninstallation surface So is a surface to which the mechanical key of thepower supply operation portion 30 c is attached among a plurality ofsurfaces constituting the outer surface of the UI section 30.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3 , the outer shape of thepanel installation surface Sp is rectangular. In addition, the panelinstallation surface Sp is a plane parallel to the xy′ plane. On theother hand, the outer shape of the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So is rectangular. In addition, the power supplyoperation portion installation surface So is also a plane parallel tothe xy′ plane. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So are parallel. However, the position of the panelinstallation surface Sp and the position of the power supply operationportion installation surface So are different from each other in adirection perpendicular to the xy′ plane (referred to as a heightdirection). That is, when the UI section 30 is viewed from the user, astep is formed in the height direction, and the panel installationsurface Sp is present at a position higher than the power supplyoperation portion installation surface So (position closer to the user).

As described above, in the present embodiment, the panel installationsurface Sp and the power supply operation portion installation surfaceSo are adjacent to each other in the x direction with a step as aboundary. Since a step is present at the boundary between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So, these surfaces are different surfaces. In thisway, when the panel installation surface Sp and the power supplyoperation portion installation surface So are different surfaces, whenviewed from the user, it becomes clear that the panel installationsurface Sp and the power supply operation portion installation surfaceSo are disposed discontinuously.

Further, when the panel installation surface Sp and the power supplyoperation portion installation surface So are different surfaces, itbecomes difficult to move the finger from one surface to the othersurface. For example, when it becomes easier for the user to recognizethat it is a movement of a finger between discontinuous surfaces bytouching the boundary of the surface with the finger or by making theboundary visible to the user, it becomes difficult to move the fingerfrom one surface to the other surface. Therefore, it is less likely thatthe operation portion provided on the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So is erroneously operated with the intention ofoperating the operation portion provided on the panel installationsurface Sp. Further, it is less likely that the operation portionprovided on the panel installation surface Sp is erroneously operatedwith the intention of operating the operation portion provided on thepower supply operation portion installation surface So.

Further, in the present embodiment, a step larger than a stroke of themechanical key of the home operation portion 30 b is present between thepanel installation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So. That is, the step between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So is larger than the stroke of the mechanical keyof the home operation portion 30 b.

The stroke of the mechanical key is a moving distance of the mechanicalkey in a pressing direction between a state where the mechanical key isnot operated and a state where the mechanical key is operated to themaximum in the pressing direction. Therefore, when operating themechanical key, the moving distance in the height direction of theuser's finger is less than or equal to the stroke. Therefore, when theuser's finger moves in the pressing direction of the mechanical keybeyond the stroke of the mechanical key, the user can recognize that theoperation is different from the operation of pressing the mechanicalkey. Therefore, from the state where the finger is present around thepanel installation surface Sp, such as after the operation on the homeoperation portion 30 b, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that theuser unintentionally moves his/her finger over the step to move thefinger to the power supply operation portion installation surface So toerroneously operate the other operation portion.

Further, in the present embodiment, a step larger than a stroke of themechanical key of the power supply operation portion 30 c is presentbetween the panel installation surface Sp and the power supply operationportion installation surface So. That is, the step between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So is larger than the stroke of the mechanical keyof the power supply operation portion 30 c. Thus, when the user's fingermoves in the pressing direction of the mechanical key beyond the strokeof the mechanical key, the user can recognize that the operation isdifferent from the operation of pressing the mechanical key. Therefore,from the state where the finger is present around the power supplyoperation portion installation surface So, such as after the operationon the power supply operation portion 30 c, it is possible to reduce thelikelihood that the user unintentionally moves his/her finger over thestep to move the finger to the panel installation surface Sp toerroneously operate the other operation portion.

Further, in the present embodiment, a difference in height between asurface Sa of the capacitive touch panel 30 a and a surface Sb of thehome operation portion 30 b in a state where the mechanical key is notoperated is smaller than a step between the panel installation surfaceSp and the power supply operation portion installation surface So. FIG.8 is a side view showing a state where the left side of the UI section30 (a portion where the power supply operation portion 30 c is provided)is viewed along a direction parallel to the xy′ plane. FIG. 8 shows astate where each operation portion is not operated. In the presentembodiment, the surface Sa of the capacitive touch panel 30 a is presentat a position lower in the height direction than the panel installationsurface Sp. The home operation portion 30 b has a rectangularparallelepiped outer shape, and the surface touched by the finger ispresent at the highest position in the height direction in a state wherethe mechanical key is not operated. As shown in FIG. 8 , in the presentembodiment, the surface of each mechanical key is configured to beslightly higher than the installation surface in the state where themechanical key is not operated.

Therefore, the difference in height between the surface Sa of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a and the surface Sb of the home operationportion 30 b in the state where the mechanical key is not operated is adifference Δab shown in FIG. 8 . The size of the step between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So is Δop. As shown in FIG. 8 , in the presentembodiment, Δab<Δop is satisfied. According to this configuration, theuser can move the finger back and forth between the home operationportion 30 b and the surface Sa of the capacitive touch panel 30 a bysimply moving the finger in the height direction by a distance smallerthan the size Δop of the step.

When a finger is present around the panel installation surface Sp (forexample, around the home operation portion 30 b or the operation portionon the screen), the user cannot reach the power supply operation portion30 c without moving his/her finger over the difference Δab in heightbetween the surface Sa of the capacitive touch panel 30 a and thesurface Sb of the home operation portion 30 b by about the size Δop ofthe step. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the likelihood of anerroneous operation in which the user unintentionally performs a touchoperation on the power supply operation portion 30 c from the statewhere the finger is present around the panel installation surface Sp.

Further, in the present embodiment, the difference Δab in height betweenthe surface Sa of the capacitive touch panel 30 a and the surface Sb ofthe home operation portion 30 b in a state where the mechanical key isnot operated is smaller than a difference Δac in height between thesurface Sa of the capacitive touch panel 30 a and a surface Sc of thepower supply operation portion 30 c in a state where the mechanical keyis not operated. According to this configuration, it is possible toreduce the likelihood of an erroneous operation in which the userunintentionally performs a touch operation on the power supply operationportion 30 c. Specifically, when a finger is present around the panelinstallation surface Sp (for example, around the home operation portion30 b or the operation portion on the screen), even though the user movesthe finger by a distance corresponding to the difference Δab in height,the user cannot reach the power supply operation portion 30 c withhis/her finger. That is, the user cannot reach the power supplyoperation portion 30 c with his/her finger unless the position of thefinger in the height direction is changed by at least a distancecorresponding to the difference Δac in height. Therefore, it is possibleto reduce the likelihood of an erroneous operation in which the userunintentionally performs a touch operation on the power supply operationportion 30 c from the state where the finger is present around the panelinstallation surface Sp.

Further, in the present embodiment, the surface Sc of the power supplyoperation portion 30 c in the state where the mechanical key is notoperated is located at a lower position than the surface Sa of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a and the panel installation surface Sp.Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the user performs a touchoperation on the power supply operation portion 30 c, the user needs tomove his/her finger farther than the height at which the operationportion on the screen of the capacitive touch panel 30 a or the homeoperation portion 30 b provided on the panel installation surface Sp isoperated. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that theuser who is operating the operation portion on the screen of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a or the home operation portion 30 b providedon the panel installation surface Sp touch-operates the power supplyoperation portion 30 c due to an erroneous operation.

Further, in the present embodiment, a step is present between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So in the central region of the capacitive touchpanel 30 a and the power supply operation portion 30 c. That is, in thepresent embodiment, for example, when the UI section 30 is viewed alongthe direction perpendicular to the xy′ plane as shown in FIG. 5 and thelike, the step, which is a boundary B between the panel installationsurface Sp and the power supply operation portion installation surfaceSo, is present near the center between the capacitive touch panel 30 aand the power supply operation portion 30 c. According to thisconfiguration, the step between the panel installation surface Sp andthe power supply operation portion installation surface So can beconfigured to be present at a position not close to both the capacitivetouch panel 30 a and the power supply operation portion 30 c. As aresult, when the user moves his/her finger between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So, it is possible to prevent the user from beingcaught in the step.

It is sufficient that the central region where the step is present is aregion including the center between the capacitive touch panel 30 a andthe power supply operation portion 30 c. For example, the region or thelike in the center when the space between the capacitive touch panel 30a and the power supply operation portion 30 c is divided into threeequal parts is the central region. Of course, the three equal divisionsare an example, and two regions in the center of the region obtained bydividing into four equal parts, a region in the central of the regionobtained by dividing into five equal parts, and the like may be thecentral region. In FIG. 5 , a region Z sandwiched by the one-dot chainlines is the central region.

Further, in the present embodiment, the home operation portion 30 b iscloser to the capacitive touch panel 30 a than the step between thepanel installation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So. That is, as shown in FIG. 5 , the distance L₁from the home operation portion 30 b to the capacitive touch panel 30 ais smaller than a distance L7 from the home operation portion 30 b tothe boundary B. Since the step is the boundary between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So, the power supply operation portion 30 c islocated on the opposite side of the home operation portion 30 b with theboundary in the x direction.

Therefore, according to the configuration in which the distance L₁ issmaller than the distance L7, the home operation portion 30 b and thepower supply operation portion 30 c can be disposed far from each other,and the home operation portion 30 b can be disposed near the capacitivetouch panel 30 a. Therefore, it is easy for the user to move his/herfinger between the home operation portion 30 b and the capacitive touchpanel 30 a to operate the operation portion. Further, it is possible toreduce the likelihood of an erroneous operation in which the usererroneously operates the power supply operation portion 30 c in a statewhere the finger is present near the home operation portion 30 b or thecapacitive touch panel 30 a.

Further, in the present embodiment, when it is considered that the homeoperation portion 30 b is located in a first direction of the capacitivetouch panel 30 a and the power supply operation portion 30 c is locatedin a second direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the firstdirection and the second direction are orthogonal or oppositedirections. In the present embodiment, the first direction and thesecond direction are orthogonal axes parallel to the sides of therectangular screen of the capacitive touch panel, that is, directionsalong the x-axis and the y′ axis.

Specifically, in the example shown in FIG. 5 , since the home operationportion 30 b is present in a negative direction of the y′ axis whenviewed from the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the negative direction ofthe y′ axis is the first direction. Since the power supply operationportion 30 c is present in a negative direction in the x-axis directionwhen viewed from the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the negative directionin the x-axis direction is the second direction. Since the y′ axis andthe x-axis are orthogonal to each other, the first direction and thesecond direction are orthogonal directions. According to thisconfiguration, it is possible to prevent the home operation portion 30 band the power supply operation portion 30 c from being disposed in thesame direction when viewed from the capacitive touch panel 30 a.

Therefore, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that the power supplyoperation portion 30 c is erroneously operated when the home operationportion 30 b is touched. Further, it is possible to reduce thelikelihood that the home operation portion 30 b is erroneously operatedwhen the power supply operation portion 30 c is touched. It issufficient that the first direction and the second direction aredifferent directions, and they may be opposite directions. Even thoughthe first direction and the second direction are opposite directions, itis possible to reduce the likelihood that the power supply operationportion 30 c is erroneously operated when the home operation portion 30b is touched. Further, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that thehome operation portion 30 b is erroneously operated when the powersupply operation portion 30 c is touched.

In the present embodiment, the first direction is the front direction ofthe user who uses the printing device 1. Therefore, the home operationportion 30 b can be disposed at a position close to the user, and theuser can easily operate the home operation portion 30 b. The seconddirection is the left direction of the user who uses the printing device1. Since people are statistically right-handed, if the second directionis the left direction when viewed from the user, the power supplyoperation portion 30 c is present in a direction that is statisticallydifficult for many people to touch with their dominant hand. Therefore,it is possible to reduce the likelihood of erroneous operation of thepower supply operation portion 30 c.

Further, in the present embodiment, the step between the capacitivetouch panel 30 a and the power supply operation portion 30 c extends inthe first direction. In the present embodiment, the first direction isthe front direction of the user who uses the printing device 1, and thesecond direction is the direction orthogonal to the first direction,which is the left-right direction of the user. Therefore, the presenceof the step extending in the first direction makes it possible to form astep extending in the direction of dividing the second direction fromthe capacitive touch panel 30 a toward the power supply operationportion 30 c. Therefore, the user can clearly grasp that the capacitivetouch panel 30 a and the power supply operation portion 30 c aredistinguished from each other.

Further, the recording material setting portion 33 including theinformation on the remaining amount displayed on the basic screen ispresent on the frontmost side in the first direction among all the softkeys displayed on the basic screen, in the basic screen. Specifically,in the present embodiment, the recording material setting portion 33 isdisposed on the frontmost side in the y′ direction among all the softkeys. According to this configuration, the recording material settingportion 33 can be disposed at a position on the basic screen that ismost easily operated by the user.

Further, the recording material setting portion 33 including theinformation on the remaining amount displayed on the basic screen ispresent on the leftmost side in the second direction among all the softkeys displayed on the basic screen, in the basic screen. Specifically,in the present embodiment, the recording material setting portion 33 isdisposed on the leftmost side in the x direction among all the softkeys. In the present embodiment, the forward transport operation portion30 d 1, the reverse transport operation portion 30 d 2, and the like aredisposed on the left side of the capacitive touch panel 30 a, and theoperation portion is not disposed on the right side of the capacitivetouch panel 30 a. Therefore, by disposing the recording material settingportion 33 on the left side on the screen of the capacitive touch panel30 a, it is possible to reduce the moving distance of the user's fingerrequired when operating the recording material setting portion 33, thehome operation portion 30 b, the forward transport operation portion 30d 1, the reverse transport operation portion 30 d 2, and the like.

Further, in the present embodiment, a panel installation surface Spprovided with the capacitive touch panel 30 a is a surface differentfrom a transport operation portion installation surface Sf provided withthe transport operation portion 30 d. In the present embodiment, thepower supply operation portion installation surface So and the transportoperation portion installation surface Sf are the same surface. As shownin FIG. 3 , the panel installation surface Sp is a rectangular planeparallel to the xy′ plane. The outer shape of the transport operationportion installation surface Sf is also rectangular, and is a planeparallel to the xy′ plane. Therefore, in the present embodiment, thepanel installation surface Sp and the transport operation portioninstallation surface Sf are parallel. However, the position of the panelinstallation surface Sp and the position of the transport operationportion installation surface Sf are different from each other in thedirection perpendicular to the xy′ plane (referred to as the heightdirection). That is, when the UI section 30 is viewed from the user, astep is formed in the height direction, and the panel installationsurface Sp is present at a position higher than the transport operationportion installation surface Sf (position closer to the user).

As described above, in the present embodiment, the panel installationsurface Sp and the transport operation portion installation surface Sfare adjacent to each other in the x direction with a step as a boundary.Since a step is present at the boundary between the panel installationsurface Sp and the transport operation portion installation surface Sf,these surfaces are different surfaces. In this way, when the panelinstallation surface Sp and the transport operation portion installationsurface Sf are different surfaces, when viewed from the user, it becomesclear that the panel installation surface Sp and the transport operationportion installation surface Sf are disposed discontinuously.

Further, when the panel installation surface Sp and the transportoperation portion installation surface Sf are different surfaces, itbecomes difficult to move the finger from one surface to the othersurface. For example, when it becomes easier for the user to recognizethat it is a movement of a finger between discontinuous surfaces bytouching the boundary of the surface with the finger or by making theboundary visible to the user, it becomes difficult to move the fingerfrom one surface to the other surface. Therefore, it is less likely thatthe operation portion provided on the transport operation portioninstallation surface Sf is erroneously operated with the intention ofoperating the operation portion provided on the panel installationsurface Sp. Further, it is less likely that the operation portionprovided on the panel installation surface Sp is erroneously operatedwith the intention of operating the operation portion provided on thetransport operation portion installation surface Sf. In the presentembodiment, since the power supply operation portion installationsurface So and the transport operation portion installation surface Sfare the same surface, the power supply operation portion 30 c and thetransport operation portion 30 d can be installed on the same surface,and these operation portions can be efficiently disposed in the UIsection 30.

Further, in the present embodiment, the forward transport operationportion 30 d 1 and the reverse transport operation portion 30 d 2included in the transport operation portion 30 d are arranged in thetransport direction of the print medium. Specifically, when printing isperformed by the printing device 1, the print medium M is dischargedfrom the center of the surface of the housing of the printing device 1on which the UI section 30 is installed, as shown in FIG. 2 . Since theuser operates the UI section 30 while standing at a position where theUI section 30 can be visually recognized, the print medium M isdischarged while being transported to the front side when viewed fromthe user who uses the printing device 1. Therefore, if the positivedirection, which is the transport direction at the time of discharge, isregarded as the front side when viewed from the user, the reversedirection of the transport direction can be regarded as the back sidewhen viewed from the user.

In the present embodiment, the forward transport operation portion 30 d1 is a mechanical key for transporting the print medium M in thepositive direction, which is the discharge direction of the printedprint medium M, and is disposed on the front side of the reversetransport operation portion 30 d 2. The reverse transport operationportion 30 d 2 is a mechanical key for transporting the print medium Min the reverse direction, and is disposed on the back side of theforward transport operation portion 30 d 1. Therefore, the mechanicalkey for transporting the print medium M to the front side is disposed onthe front side, and the mechanical key for transporting the print mediumM to the back side is disposed on the back side.

According to this configuration, it is sufficient that the user touchesthe mechanical key on the front side when transporting the print mediumM to the front side, and touches the mechanical key on the back sidewhen transporting the print medium M to the back side. Therefore, theuser can intuitively perform the operation as compared with the casewhere the disposition of the forward transport operation portion 30 d 1and the reverse transport operation portion 30 d 2 is different from thedisposition of the present embodiment, such as when the disposition isreversed in the y′ direction. Since the print medium M is in the form ofa sheet and it is difficult to strictly specify the transport direction,the transport direction may be defined in a state of being projectedonto a specific plane, for example, an xy′ plane.

Further, the forward transport operation portion 30 d 1 and the reversetransport operation portion 30 d 2 are located at the same position inthe left-right direction of the user who uses the printing device. Inthe present embodiment, since the user's left-right direction is the xdirection shown in FIG. 3 , when the forward transport operation portion30 d 1 and the reverse transport operation portion 30 d 2 are located atthe same position in the left-right direction, they are in a state ofbeing arranged along the y′ direction. Specifically, the mechanical keyincluded in the transport operation portion 30 d and the mechanical keyincluded in the power supply operation portion 30 c are arranged in arow.

In the present embodiment, the transport direction of the print medium Mis a direction along the y′ direction, that is, a front direction and adepth direction. Therefore, when the forward transport operation portion30 d 1 and the reverse transport operation portion 30 d 2 are located atthe same position in the left-right direction, these operation portionsare arranged side by side along the transport direction. Therefore, theuser can intuitively perform the operation as compared with the casewhere the forward transport operation portion 30 d 1 and the reversetransport operation portion 30 d 2 are located at different positions inthe left-right direction.

Further, in the present embodiment, an interval between the forwardtransport operation portion 30 d 1 and the reverse transport operationportion 30 d 2 is narrower than an interval between the transportoperation portion 30 d and the power supply operation portion 30 c.According to this configuration, the user can easily intuitivelyunderstand that the forward transport operation portion 30 d 1 and thereverse transport operation portion 30 d 2 belonging to the transportoperation portion 30 d are operation portions having a pair offunctions. Further, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that theuser who intends to operate the transport operation portion 30 derroneously operates the power supply operation portion 30 c.

Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8 , the differencein height between the surface of the capacitive touch panel 30 a and thesurface of the transport operation portion 30 d in a state where themechanical key is not operated is defined as Δdc. In this case, thedifference Δdc in height is smaller than the difference Δab in heightbetween the surface of the capacitive touch panel 30 a and the surfacein a state where the home operation portion 30 b, which is a mechanicalkey provided on the panel installation surface Sp, is not operated.According to this configuration, it is possible to reduce the likelihoodof an erroneous operation in which the user unintentionally performs atouch operation on the transport operation portion 30 d.

Specifically, when a finger is present around the panel installationsurface Sp (for example, around the home operation portion 30 b or theoperation portion on the screen), even though the user moves the fingerby a distance corresponding to the difference Δab in height, the usercannot reach the transport operation portion 30 d with his/her finger.That is, the user cannot reach the transport operation portion 30 d withhis/her finger unless the position of the finger in the height directionis changed by at least a distance corresponding to the difference Δdc inheight. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the likelihood of anerroneous operation in which the user unintentionally performs a touchoperation on the transport operation portion 30 d from the state wherethe finger is present around the panel installation surface Sp.

Further, in the present embodiment, the power supply operation portion30 c is located at the central portion or on the back side of thecentral portion in the depth direction of the capacitive touch panel 30a when viewed from the user who uses the printing device. In the presentembodiment, the power supply operation portion 30 c is located on theback side of the capacitive touch panel 30 a in the depth direction(lateral direction, y′ direction) from the central portion (center inthe depth direction) of the capacitive touch panel 30 a. According tothis configuration, the power supply operation portion 30 c can bedisposed far from the user, and the likelihood of an erroneous operationon the power supply operation portion 30 c can be reduced. Even when thepower supply operation portion 30 c is present in the central portion inthe depth direction, many other operation portions are disposed on thefront side with respect to the user, so that the likelihood of anerroneous operation on the power supply operation portion 30 c can bereduced.

Further, the transport operation portion 30 d is located at the centralportion or on the front side of the central portion in the depthdirection of the capacitive touch panel 30 a when viewed from the userwho uses the printing device. In the present embodiment, the transportoperation portion 30 d is located on the front side of the capacitivetouch panel 30 a in the depth direction (lateral direction, y′direction) from the central portion (center in the depth direction) ofthe capacitive touch panel 30 a. According to this configuration, thetransport operation portion 30 d can be disposed near the user, and theuser can easily operate the transport operation portion 30 d. Further,it is possible to reduce the likelihood of an erroneous operation onanother operation portion, for example, the power supply operationportion 30 c, when the transport operation portion 30 d is operated.Even when the transport operation portion 30 d is present in the centralportion in the depth direction, the transport operation portion 30 d canbe easily operated because the user is not far from the transportoperation portion 30 d.

Further, in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction of theprint medium, the transport operation portion 30 d and the print mediumare located on the same side of the capacitive touch panel 30 a. Thatis, as shown in FIG. 3 , in the UI section 30, the transport operationportion 30 d is present on the left side (the negative direction side ofthe x-axis) when viewed from the user. Also, the discharge port of theprint medium M in the printing device 1 is present on the left side ofthe UI section 30 as shown in FIG. 2 . Therefore, the transportoperation portion 30 d and the print medium M are located on the sameside as viewed from the capacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore, bylooking at the left side, the user can operate the transport operationportion 30 d with the transport operation portion 30 d included in thesame field of view while capturing the print medium M in the field ofview. Therefore, it is not necessary to check the transport condition ofthe print medium M every time the transport operation portion 30 d isperformed, and the print medium M can be easily transported.

Further, in the present embodiment, a step larger than a stroke of themechanical key of the transport operation portion 30 d is presentbetween the panel installation surface Sp and the transport operationportion installation surface Sf. That is, the step Δop between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the transport operation portion installationsurface Sf is larger than the stroke of the mechanical key of thetransport operation portion 30 d. When the user's finger moves in thepressing direction of the mechanical key beyond the stroke of themechanical key, the user can recognize that the operation is differentfrom the operation of pressing the mechanical key. Therefore, from thestate where the finger is present around the transport operation portioninstallation surface Sf, such as after the operation on the transportoperation portion 30 d, it is possible to reduce the likelihood that theuser unintentionally moves his/her finger over the step to move thefinger to the panel installation surface Sp to erroneously operate theother operation portion.

Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8 , a differenceΔdc in height between the surface Sa of the capacitive touch panel 30 aand a surface Sd of the transport operation portion 30 d in a statewhere the mechanical key is not operated is smaller than a step Δopbetween the panel installation surface Sp and the transport operationportion installation surface Sf. In this configuration, in order tooperate the operation portion on the capacitive touch panel 30 a afterthe operation of the transport operation portion 30 d, the user needs tomake the amount of movement of his/her finger after the operation of thetransport operation portion 30 d larger than the difference Δdc inheight and go over the step Δop. According to this configuration, it ispossible to reduce the likelihood of an erroneous operation in which theuser unintentionally performs a touch operation on the operation portionof the screen of the capacitive touch panel 30 a from the state wherethe finger is present around the transport operation portion 30 d.

In the present embodiment, a step is present between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the transport operation portion installationsurface Sf in the central region of the capacitive touch panel 30 a andthe transport operation portion 30 d. That is, in the presentembodiment, for example, when the UI section 30 is viewed along thedirection perpendicular to the xy′ plane as shown in FIG. 5 and thelike, the step, which is a boundary B between the panel installationsurface Sp and the transport operation portion installation surface Sf,is present near the center between the capacitive touch panel 30 a andthe transport operation portion 30 d. According to this configuration,the step between the panel installation surface Sp and the transportoperation portion installation surface Sf can be configured to bepresent at a position not close to both the capacitive touch panel 30 aand the transport operation portion 30 d. As a result, when the usermoves his/her finger between the panel installation surface Sp and thetransport operation portion installation surface Sf, it is possible toprevent the user from being caught in the step.

It is sufficient that the central region where the step is present is aregion including the center between the capacitive touch panel 30 a andthe transport operation portion 30 d. For example, the region or thelike in the center when the space between the capacitive touch panel 30a and the transport operation portion 30 d is divided into three equalparts is the central region. Of course, the three equal divisions are anexample, and two regions in the center of the region obtained bydividing into four equal parts, a region in the central of the regionobtained by dividing into five equal parts, and the like may be thecentral region. In FIG. 5 , the region Z sandwiched by the one-dot chainlines is the central region, but the fact that the region Z is notlimited to the central region when the space between the capacitivetouch panel 30 a and the transport operation portion 30 d is dividedinto three equal parts is as described above.

Further, the screen in the present embodiment includes a screen in whichthe transport operation portion 30 d and the in-screen operation portion35 are located at the same position in the lateral direction of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a. For example, in any of the screens shown inFIGS. 6 and 7 , when the transport operation portion 30 d is virtuallymoved in the x direction perpendicular to the y′ direction, which is thelateral direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the transportoperation portion 30 d overlaps the in-screen operation portion 35.Although the return operation portion 34 is not displayed on the basicscreen shown in FIG. 5 , when the operation portion displayed on thebasic screen is regarded as an in-screen operation portion differentfrom the return operation portion 34, the transport operation portion 30d and the in-screen operation portion are located at the same positionin the lateral direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a.

As described above, when the transport operation portion 30 d and thein-screen operation portion 35 are located at the same position in thelateral direction of the capacitive touch panel 30 a, the finger can bemoved between the transport operation portion 30 d and the in-screenoperation portion 35 only by moving the finger in the longitudinaldirection without moving the finger in the lateral direction of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a. Therefore, it becomes easy to touch thein-screen operation portion 35 immediately after the touch operation onthe transport operation portion 30 d, or to touch the transportoperation portion 30 d immediately after the touch operation on thein-screen operation portion 35.

3. Other Embodiments

The above embodiment is an example for carrying out the presentdisclosure, and various other embodiments can be employed. The printingdevice may be a printing device that performs printing on a print mediumother than the fabric, for example, paper. Further, the size of theprinting device may be smaller or larger than that of theabove-described embodiment. The printing device may be a device having afunction other than the printing device, for example, a multifunctiondevice capable of performing at least one of a fax function, a scanningfunction, a copying function, and the like. Further, the aspect of theUI section 30 is not limited to the above-described embodiment. Forexample, the outer shape of the UI section 30 may have a shape differentfrom that of the above-described embodiment, or the panel installationsurface Sp may have a direction different from that of theabove-described embodiment, for example, a direction parallel to thehorizontal direction.

Further, the display mode of the operation portion is an example, andvarious modes may be employed. For example, the basic screen includes aplurality of soft keys, the information on the remaining amount includesa soft key, and the soft key included in the information on theremaining amount may have a configuration closest to the power supplyoperation portion 30 c among all the soft keys displayed on the basicscreen. Examples of such a configuration include the configuration shownin FIG. 9 . In the example shown in FIG. 9 , the recording materialsetting portion 33 is displayed in an edge of the upper left portion ofthe basic screen. Therefore, the recording material setting portion 33,which is a soft key including the information on the remaining amount,is closest to the power supply operation portion 30 c among all the softkeys.

According to this configuration, after the user visually recognizes thepower supply operation portion 30 c and performs an operation, the usercan check the information on the remaining amount by a small movement ofthe line of sight on the basic screen displayed immediately after theprinting device 1 is started. Further, after the user visuallyrecognizes and operates the power supply operation portion 30 c, theuser can perform a touch operation on the recording material settingportion 33 after a small moving distance of his/her finger on the basicscreen displayed immediately after the printing device 1 is started.

In the above-mentioned printing device 1, the power supply operationportion 30 c and the return operation portion 34 may be configured tosandwich the in-screen operation portion 35. Such a configuration isrealized, for example, by the screen shown in FIG. 10 . In the screenshown in FIG. 10 , the return operation portion 34 is disposed on theupper right side of the screen. Other configurations are the same as thescreen shown in FIG. 7 . However, since the fixed operation portion 31 ashown in FIG. 9 is an operation portion other than the return operationportion 34, it can be considered to be an in-screen operation portion35, and is described as the in-screen operation portion 35 in FIG. 10 .

In such an example shown in FIG. 10 , the power supply operation portion30 c and the return operation portion 34 sandwich the in-screenoperation portion 35. That is, the straight line Lo indicated by theone-dot chain line extending from the center of the power supplyoperation portion 30 c to the center of the return operation portion 34passes through the in-screen operation portion 35. The return operationportion 34 is an operation portion for returning to the screen displayedbefore the transition to the displayed screen. In a user interface thatgives various instructions while transitioning through a plurality ofscreens having a hierarchical structure, such a return operation portion34 may be frequently touch-operated.

When the power supply operation portion 30 c and the return operationportion 34 sandwich the in-screen operation portion 35 as in the presentembodiment, the power supply operation portion 30 c and the returnoperation portion 34 are present on opposite sides when viewed from thein-screen operation portion 35. Therefore, the power supply operationportion 30 c and the return operation portion 34 are not in a state ofbeing adjacent to each other, and the power supply operation portion 30c and the return operation portion 34 can be disposed apart from eachother. According to this configuration, it is possible to reduce thelikelihood that a user who intends to perform a touch operation on thereturn operation portion 34, which may be frequently touch-operated,erroneously operates the power supply operation portion 30 c.

Further, in the example shown in FIG. 10 , the transport operationportion 30 d and the return operation portion 34 sandwich the in-screenoperation portion 35. That is, straight lines Lf1 and Lf2 shown by atwo-dot chain line extending from the center of the forward transportoperation portion 30 d 1 and the reverse transport operation portion 30d 2 constituting the transport operation portion 30 d to the center ofthe return operation portion 34 pass through the in-screen operationportion 35. The return operation portion 34 is an operation portion forreturning to the screen displayed before the transition to the displayedscreen. In a user interface that gives various instructions whiletransitioning through a plurality of screens having a hierarchicalstructure, such a return operation portion 34 may be frequentlytouch-operated. The transport operation portion 30 d is an operationportion for transporting the print medium M, and it is less likely thatthe transport operation portion 30 d is operated in the case of theprinting process, for example, during printing of a certain image.

When the transport operation portion 30 d and the return operationportion 34 sandwich the in-screen operation portion 35 as in the presentembodiment, the transport operation portion 30 d and the returnoperation portion 34 are present on opposite sides when viewed from thein-screen operation portion 35. Therefore, the transport operationportion 30 d and the return operation portion 34 are not in a state ofbeing adjacent to each other, and the transport operation portion 30 dand the return operation portion 34 can be disposed apart from eachother. According to this configuration, it is possible to reduce thelikelihood that a user who intends to perform a touch operation on thereturn operation portion 34, which may be frequently touch-operated,erroneously operates the transport operation portion 30 d.

Further, Braille may be associated with the mechanical key of theprinting device 1. For example, as shown in FIG. 8 , the power supplyoperation portion 30 c may include Braille 30 c 1 representing thefunction of the mechanical key of the power supply operation portion 30c. In this case, there may be a configuration in which a step Δop largerthan a height Hc of Braille is present between the panel installationsurface Sp and the power supply operation portion installation surfaceSo. The height Hc of the Braille 30 c 1 is the distance in the heightdirection from the power supply operation portion installation surfaceSo to the apex of the Braille 30 c 1.

According to this configuration, the user's finger immediately afteroperating the power supply operation portion 30 c based on the Braille30 c 1 is present at a position lower than the panel installationsurface Sp, which is the apex in the height direction of the step Δop.Therefore, in order for the user to move his/her finger to the panelinstallation surface Sp side, it is necessary to go over the stepbetween the panel installation surface Sp and the power supply operationportion installation surface So. Therefore, it is possible to reduce thelikelihood of an erroneous operation in which the user unintentionallyperforms a touch operation on the operation portion of the screen of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a from the state where the finger is presentaround the power supply operation portion 30 c.

Further, the transport operation portion 30 d may include Braille 30 d 3representing the function of the mechanical key of the transportoperation portion 30 d, and there may be a configuration in which a stepΔop larger than a height Hd of the Braille 30 d 3 is present between thepanel installation surface Sp and the transport operation portioninstallation surface Sf.

According to this configuration, the user's finger immediately afteroperating the forward transport operation portion 30 d 1 or the reversetransport operation portion 30 d 2 based on the Braille 30 d 3 ispresent at a position lower than the panel installation surface Sp,which is the apex in the height direction of the step Δop. Therefore, inorder for the user to move his/her finger to the panel installationsurface Sp side, it is necessary to go over the step between the panelinstallation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So. Therefore, it is possible to reduce thelikelihood of an erroneous operation in which the user unintentionallyperforms a touch operation on the operation portion of the screen of thecapacitive touch panel 30 a from the state where the finger is presentaround the transport operation portion 30 d.

Further, the panel installation surface Sp and the power supplyoperation portion installation surface So may be non-parallel. Further,the panel installation surface Sp and the transport operation portioninstallation surface Sf may be non-parallel. FIG. 11 is an example of aconfiguration in which the power supply operation portion installationsurface So and the transport operation portion installation surface Sfare the same surface, and these installation surfaces are differentsurfaces from the panel installation surface Sp. In FIG. 11 , thereference numerals of the operation portion and the like are the same asthose shown in FIG. 3 .

In FIG. 11 , the UI section 30 has a rectangular parallelepiped outershape, and is attached in a state where the panel installation surfaceSp is inclined with respect to the surface of the housing of theprinting device 1. The situation in which the panel installation surfaceSp is parallel to the xy′ plane is the same as that of the embodimentshown in FIG. 3 . In FIG. 11 , the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So and the transport operation portion installationsurface Sf are side surfaces located on the left side in the left-rightdirection (x direction) when viewed from the user.

According to such a configuration, the panel installation surface Sp canbe orthogonal to the power supply operation portion installation surfaceSo and the transport operation portion installation surface Sf.Therefore, in the process of operating the operation portion (homeoperation portion 30 b or operation portion on the capacitive touchpanel 30 a) on the panel installation surface Sp side, it is possible toreduce the likelihood of erroneously operating the power supplyoperation portion 30 c and the transport operation portion 30 d.Further, in the process of operating the power supply operation portion30 c and the transport operation portion 30 d, it is possible to reducethe likelihood of erroneously operating the operation portion on thepanel installation surface Sp side.

FIG. 12 is also an example of a configuration in which the power supplyoperation portion installation surface So and the transport operationportion installation surface Sf are the same surface, and theseinstallation surfaces are different surfaces from the panel installationsurface Sp. Also in FIG. 12 , the reference numerals of the operationportion and the like are the same as those shown in FIG. 3 . In FIG. 12, the UI section 30 is composed of a polyhedron protruding from thehousing of the printing device 1. Also in the example shown in FIG. 12 ,the panel installation surface Sp is parallel to the xy′ plane shown inFIG. 3 . In FIG. 12 , the power supply operation portion installationsurface So and the transport operation portion installation surface Sfare surfaces (xz plane) facing the user in the housing of the printingdevice 1. The power supply operation portion 30 c and the transportoperation portion 30 d are formed in the vicinity of the polyhedronprovided with the capacitive touch panel 30 a.

According to such a configuration, the panel installation surface Sp,and the power supply operation portion installation surface So and thetransport operation portion installation surface Sf are clearlydifferent surfaces when viewed from the user. Therefore, in the processof operating the operation portion (home operation portion 30 b oroperation portion on the capacitive touch panel 30 a) on the panelinstallation surface Sp side, it is possible to reduce the likelihood oferroneously operating the power supply operation portion 30 c and thetransport operation portion 30 d. Further, in the process of operatingthe power supply operation portion 30 c and the transport operationportion 30 d, it is possible to reduce the likelihood of erroneouslyoperating the operation portion on the panel installation surface Spside.

It is sufficient that the printing device is any printing device thatperforms printing using a recording material. That is, it is sufficientthat the printing device is any printing device that records therecording material on the medium by performing various inputs using auser interface such as an operation portion or an capacitive touchpanel. The recording material is not limited to the ink as in theabove-described embodiments, and may be toner, or various substancescapable of forming an image on the medium may be used as the recordingmaterial. The printing method is also not limited, and various methodssuch as an electrophotographic method, a transfer method, and asublimation type may be employed.

The capacitive touch panel is an interface capable of inputting bytouching a user's finger or the like, and includes a display capable ofdisplaying an image. The displayed image is not limited to theabove-described embodiments, and may be displayed in various modes. Thatis, the mode is not limited, such as the disposition of soft keys, thepart that functions as a soft key, and the part where information isdisplayed without functioning as a soft key.

In addition, the same type or the same screen may be displayed in aplurality of modes. For example, the screen displayed as the basicscreen may have a different configuration depending on the settings andthe like. The touch panel is preferably an electrostatic type, but maybe another type. Further, the screen displayed on the touch panel may beany screen. Therefore, there may be configured so that the informationon the remaining amount of the recording material is not included in thebasic screen.

The home operation portion is an operation portion including amechanical key for transitioning from the screen displayed on thecapacitive touch panel to a basic screen including the information onthe remaining amount of the recording material. That is, the homeoperation portion is a key for transitioning from the screen displayedon the capacitive touch panel. However, it is not a soft key formed bythe capacitive touch panel, but a mechanical key installed at a positiondifferent from that of the capacitive touch panel.

The information on the remaining amount of the recording material isinformation indicating the remaining amount of the recording materialthat can be used in the printing device. The information indicating theremaining amount may be in various modes, and is not limited to the modein which the remaining amount of the recording material for each coloris shown by a bar graph as in the above-described embodiments. Forexample, the remaining amount of the recording material for each colormay be expressed numerically, the information may be an average value ofthe remaining amount, or the remaining amount of a specific color may betypically displayed, and various modes may be employed. Examples of thespecific color include a color having the minimum remaining amount, apredetermined number of colors in ascending order of remaining amount,and a color having a high frequency of use.

It is sufficient that the basic screen is a screen that includesinformation on the remaining amount of recording material. In aconfiguration in which a plurality of screens displayed on thecapacitive touch panel form a hierarchical structure and the screens canbe switched so as to transition from the upper hierarchy to the lowerhierarchy, the basic screen is preferably the screen of the uppermosthierarchy. In addition, in a configuration in which a plurality ofscreens can be displayed on the capacitive touch panel, the basic screenmay be a screen displayed first, for example, a screen displayed firstafter the power is turned on, a screen displayed first after returningfrom the sleep state, or the like. Of course, these configurations areexamples, and the basic screen may display more detailed information andmay be capable of performing detailed settings in a screen set from thebasic screen, and may be a screen of a hierarchy lower than theuppermost hierarchy.

It is sufficient that the mechanical key is a device that detects aninput to the key by the user according to the operation of a movablepart, and the mechanical key can be realized by various modes such as abutton composed of various switches such as a tact switch. It issufficient that the home operation portion includes a mechanical key,and it may be a part including a non-mechanical key. This also appliesto other operation portions. In addition, the size of a key such as amechanical key may be specified by various methods, and may be, forexample, a size of a diameter such as a diameter or a radius, an area, asize in a specific direction, or the like.

It is sufficient that the soft key is a key that is turned on and off bya phenomenon different from the operation of the movable part, not a keyfor which the operation of the movable part is a detection target. Thatis, when a specific input is received by detecting any range of thecapacitive touch panel, the range functions as a key, and this is a softkey. In the soft key, any information related to the key may or may notbe displayed. It is sufficient that the operation portion including asoft key includes a soft key, and it may be a part including informationother than the soft key. This also applies to other operation portions.

The power supply operation portion is an operation portion including amechanical key for shifting the power state of the printing device. Thatis, the printing device can operate in a plurality of power states, andthe user can shift from one power state to another power state byoperating the power supply operation portion. The number of power statesmay be two or more, and when the number of power states is two, thepower states are on and off. When the number of power states is three,for example, there are three power states, on, off, and sleep. That is,the mechanical key for shifting the power state of the printing devicemay be a mechanical key having only a function of shifting the printingdevice from the on state to the sleep state, or may be a mechanical keyhaving a function of mutually shifting the printing device between theon state and the sleep state. However, it is desirable that themechanical key has at least a function of shifting the power state ofthe printing device from the on state to the state where the powerconsumption is lower than that of the on state.

When the home operation portion is closer to the capacitive touch panelthan the power supply operation portion, it is sufficient that theoperability is improved by realizing this state as compared with thecase where this state is not realized. For example, since the homeoperation portion is closer to the capacitive touch panel than the powersupply operation portion, the home operation portion is easier to move afinger to the capacitive touch panel immediately after the operationthan the power supply operation portion. Therefore, the home operationportion can easily operate the capacitive touch panel immediately afterthe operation than the power supply operation portion. In this way, therelationship between the home operation portion, the power supplyoperation portion, and the capacitive touch panel may be anyrelationship as long as the home operation portion is closer to thecapacitive touch panel than the power supply operation portion, so thatit is easier to move a finger to the capacitive touch panel immediatelyafter the operation and the operability is high.

Further, for example, since the power supply operation portion isfarther from the capacitive touch panel than the home operation portion,the power supply operation portion is more difficult to move a finger tothe capacitive touch panel immediately after the operation than the homeoperation portion. Therefore, the likelihood of an erroneous operationin which the user unintentionally touches the mechanical key afteroperating the capacitive touch panel is lower in the power supplyoperation portion than in the home operation portion. An erroneousoperation on the power supply operation portion causes an unintendedshift of the power state, but in many cases, when the power state shiftsduring normal use, printing becomes impossible, so that the adverseeffect of an erroneous operation is greater than an erroneous operationon the home operation portion. In this way, the relationship between thehome operation portion, the power supply operation portion, and thecapacitive touch panel may be any relationship as long as the powersupply operation portion is farther from the capacitive touch panel thanthe home operation portion, so that it is easier to prevent theoccurrence of erroneous operations that have a large influence.

As described above, the relationship between the home operation portion,the power supply operation portion, and the capacitive touch panel maybe any relationship as long as the operability is improved, and whetheror not the home operation portion is closer to the capacitive touchpanel than the power supply operation portion may be evaluated byvarious indexes. That is, as in the above-described embodiments, theevaluation may be performed based on the shortest distance between eachoperation portion and the capacitive touch panel, or the evaluation maybe performed based on another index. For example, the evaluation may beperformed based on the distance between the center of gravity of eachoperation portion and the center of gravity of the capacitive touchpanel. Further, the evaluation may be performed based on a predeterminedaxis, for example, an orthogonal axis for specifying coordinates on thescreen of the capacitive touch panel, or a distance along a directionparallel to the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and thelike when viewed from the user. Further, for example, the evaluation maybe performed based on the distance between the position of the fingerwhen operating the mechanical key of each operation portion and theposition of the finger when operating the soft key of the capacitivetouch panel.

The distance between the operation portions may also be evaluated byvarious indexes. That is, as in the above-described embodiments, theevaluation may be performed based on the shortest distance between theoperation portions, or the evaluation may be performed based on thedistance between the centers of gravity of the operation portions.Further, the evaluation may be performed based on a predetermined axis,for example, an orthogonal axis for specifying coordinates on the screenof the capacitive touch panel, or a distance along a direction parallelto the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and the like whenviewed from the user. Further, for example, the evaluation may beperformed based on the distance between the positions of the fingerswhen operating the mechanical keys of each operation portion.

The width of the operation portion may be the width in any direction. Aslong as it is a rectangular or substantially rectangular mechanical key,the width may be in any direction along the side thereof. If it is amechanical key such as a polygon or a circle, the width can be a lengthsuch as a diameter passing through the center of the key or a diameter.

It is sufficient that the return operation portion is any operationportion including a soft key for transitioning from the screen displayedon the capacitive touch panel to the original screen. In theabove-described embodiments, the soft key of the return operationportion is a soft key for returning to the immediately preceding screen,that is, for transitioning from the hierarchy to which the screenbelongs to the upper hierarchy by only one hierarchy. However, the softkey of the return operation portion is not limited to such a soft key,and may be, for example, a soft key for giving an instruction fortransitioning to a lower hierarchy, a soft key for giving an instructionfor transitioning to a higher or lower hierarchy of two or morehierarchies, or a combination of these. In addition, the soft key may bea soft key for transitioning to a specific screen displayed in the past,for example, a soft key for transitioning to a basic screen.

The printing device is provided with an capacitive touch panel and anoperation portion as a user interface. Since the capacitive touch paneland the operation portion are interfaces having a large size, a widersurface than the capacitive touch panel and the operation portion isrequired to be installed in the printing device. In this way, thesurface on which the capacitive touch panel and the operation portionare attached is the installation surface. The installation surface maybe a surface provided with an capacitive touch panel or an operationportion, may be a surface of a housing provided in a printing device, ormay be a surface of the structure attached to the housing as in theabove-described embodiments.

The installation surface may be a plane or a curved surface.Installation surfaces are distinguished from each other by whether ornot they can be counted as connected parts. For example, in apolyhedron, when there are sides or ridges that form a boundary betweensurfaces, the parts distinguished by the boundary are differentsurfaces. Therefore, the planes can be distinguished from each otherdepending on whether or not the positions and orientations of the planesare the same. In the case of the curved surface, when it is determinedthat the curved surface changes smoothly and is a series of continuoussurfaces, it is regarded as the same surface, but when there areboundaries such as sides and ridges, the surfaces separated by theboundaries are different surfaces. In addition, when there are adjacentsurfaces separated by boundaries such as grooves, even if the surfacesare continuous, such as a case where when one surface is extended, itoverlaps the other surface, the surfaces can be regarded as differentsurfaces when there are boundaries.

The step is formed by, for example, the position of each surface beingdifferent at the boundary between two adjacent surfaces. In this case,the distance between the surfaces in a specific direction (for example,the direction perpendicular to the surfaces) corresponds to the size ofthe step. It is sufficient that the stroke of the mechanical key is anindex for evaluating the distance between the state where the mechanicalkey is not operated and the state where the movable part is moved to themaximum. This index may be, for example, an index obtained by measuringthe difference between the two states, an index indicating the designdifference between the two states, or various indexes.

Braille may be any information as long as it can be read by a visuallyimpaired person or the like by touch, and an installation position, aformat, and information to be shown are not limited. For example, theBraille of each operation portion may be installed around the mechanicalkey of each operation portion, or may be installed on the mechanicalkey. When a convex arrow shape is formed corresponding to the key of thetransport operation portion, this is also included in Braille. Inaddition to Braille, the power supply operation portion installationsurface So may be provided with unevenness. Even in these cases, withthe configuration in which a step Δop larger than the height of Brailleor unevenness is present between the panel installation surface Sp andthe power supply operation portion installation surface So, in order forthe user to move his/her finger to the panel installation surface Spside, it is desirable that it is necessary to go over the step betweenthe panel installation surface Sp and the power supply operation portioninstallation surface So.

In a configuration in which the home operation portion is located in thefirst direction of the capacitive touch panel, the power supplyoperation portion is located in the second direction of the capacitivetouch panel, and the first direction and the second direction areorthogonal or opposite directions, with this configuration, it is onlynecessary to prevent the home operation portion and the power supplyoperation portion from being close to each other. Thereby, it is onlynecessary to prevent an erroneous operation of one of the home operationportion and the power supply operation portion after the operation ofthe other.

Therefore, it is sufficient that the first direction and the seconddirection are defined so that it can be determined whether or not theyare located on the same side when the capacitive touch panel is used asa reference. The definition of such a direction may be defined byvarious methods other than the configuration in which the firstdirection and the second direction are defined as the directions alongthe orthogonal axis parallel to the side of the rectangular screen ofthe capacitive touch panel as in the above-described embodiments. Forexample, the definition may be made based on a user's point of view.Further, with one point on the capacitive touch panel as a reference,the direction from the reference to the home operation portion may bedefined as the first direction, and the direction from the reference tothe power supply operation portion may be defined as the seconddirection.

What is claimed is:
 1. A printing device that performs printing using arecording material, the printing device comprising: an capacitive touchpanel; a home operation portion including a mechanical key fortransitioning from a screen displayed on the capacitive touch panel to abasic screen including information on a remaining amount of therecording material; and a power supply operation portion including amechanical key for shifting a power state of the printing device,wherein the home operation portion is located in a first direction ofthe capacitive touch panel, and the power supply operation portion islocated in a second direction of the capacitive touch panel, and thefirst direction and the second direction are orthogonal or oppositedirections.
 2. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein thefirst direction is a front direction of a user who uses the printingdevice.
 3. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the seconddirection is a left direction of a user who uses the printing device. 4.The printing device according to claim 1, wherein a step extending inthe first direction is present between the capacitive touch panel andthe power supply operation portion.
 5. The printing device according toclaim 1, wherein the information on the remaining amount is a soft key,and the information on the remaining amount is present on a frontmostside in the first direction among all soft keys displayed on the basicscreen, in the basic screen.
 6. The printing device according to claim1, wherein the information on the remaining amount is a soft key, andthe information on the remaining amount is present on a leftmost side inthe second direction among all soft keys displayed on the basic screen,in the basic screen.
 7. The printing device according to claim 1,wherein a return operation portion including a soft key fortransitioning from the displayed screen to an original screen is presenton an opposite side of the home operation portion, on the screendisplayed on the capacitive touch panel.
 8. The printing deviceaccording to claim 7, wherein the return operation portion is displayedon a first screen displayed on the capacitive touch panel, and is notdisplayed on a second screen displayed on the capacitive touch panel. 9.The printing device according to claim 7, wherein the screen displayedon the capacitive touch panel includes an in-screen operation portionincluding a soft key other than the return operation portion, and thehome operation portion and the power supply operation portion sandwichthe in-screen operation portion.
 10. The printing device according toclaim 9, wherein the home operation portion and the in-screen operationportion are located at the same position in a longitudinal direction ofthe capacitive touch panel.
 11. The printing device according to claim9, wherein the power supply operation portion is located on a back sideof the in-screen operation portion in a lateral direction of thecapacitive touch panel when viewed from a user who uses the printingdevice.
 12. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the homeoperation portion and the power supply operation portion sandwich thecapacitive touch panel.
 13. The printing device according to claim 1,wherein the home operation portion and the power supply operationportion sandwich the information on the remaining amount displayed onthe capacitive touch panel.
 14. The printing device according to claim1, wherein the mechanical key of the home operation portion is smallerthan the mechanical key of the power supply operation portion.